40th Anniversary San Fernando Race

by RHKYC Media / Guy Nowell, Sail-World Asia on 6 Apr 2017 Organised by the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club under the auspices of the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC), the 2017 edition of the biennial San Fernando Race will feature 16 yachts sailing in four divisions: IRC Racer 0, 1, IRC Cruising and HKPN.

The largest boat in the fleet, Seng Huang Lee’s 100ft Super Maxi Scallywag, will be aiming to break the monohull race record of 49h 55m 12s set in 2001 by 70’ ULDB Sled, FfreeFire. Chan will be defending his record on his latest TP52 FreeFire; this will be the eighth San Fernando Race for Hong Kong-based owner Sam Chan on a succession of boats named FreeFire. Joining Scallywag and FreeFire in IRC Racer 0 is Ernesto Echauz’s TP52 from the Philippines, Standard Insurance Centennial.

IRC Racer 1 features a fleet of seven boats, including perennial Hong Kong rivals Ambush and Mandrake III, with Joachim Isler and Drew Taylor on board their McConaghy-built Mills 41 while the Burns & Kinmonth combo on their Sydney GTS43 will be pushing hard. Jonathan Mahony’s HYD 42 Zanzibar will be joining th fleet from Singapore.

In IRC Cruising, first time entry Swan 55 Emocean2 will be raced double handed by owner Christopher Allan and experienced offshore crew Olivier Decamps. Also racing in IRC Cruising will be San Fernando Race Committee Chairman’s Peter Churchouse’s Moonblue 2, Anthony Day’s Explorer another first time San Fernando skipper Michael Ashbrook on board his Jeanneau 479 Sitka.

Race organisers are hoping for better conditions then the 2015 edition - when Typhoon Maysak forced the RHKYC to scrap the race in the interest of competitor safety. Instead, the fleet was sent on a 330nm triangular ‘A to A’ course of physical and virtual ocean marks.

The warning signal for the 2017 San Fernando Race will sound at 1310hrs on Wednesday 12 April, against the backdrop of RHKYC’s Kellett Island Clubhouse in Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour. Spectators wishing to follow the race can keep up with the yacht movements on Yellowbrick trackers, and armchair sailors can race alongside the fleet on Virtual Regatta and SailOnline.org.

Further information about the race is available on the event website www.sanfernandorace.com